The Marlins first season under Ozzie Guillen has been a disappointment. After building a brand new ballpark and making some significant splashes in free agency during the offseason, nobody expect Miami to turn into sellers at the trade deadline. Now that they have, it makes sense that Hanley Ramirez was the first to go. His career with the Marlins has been a frustrating roller coaster both on the field and off of it. While some of Hanley’s former teammates — including Jose Reyes — said they were sad to see him go, others are reportedly relieved.
According to the Miami Herald, one anonoymous player said a number of people in the organization were happy when Ramirez was traded to the Dodgers.
“There were a lot of smiles,” the player said. “They created a monster from a very good baseball player — gave him so much slack to do whatever the (expletive) he wanted because he was performing.
“You can push some things aside when you’re hitting .340 with 40 home runs. You say ‘He’s a (jerk), but I can deal with it. … But when you’re not playing and you’re trying to be that same (jerk), it starts rubbing people the wrong way.”
Guillen defended Ramirez when the trade first happened and said it would be stupid to blame him for the troubles the team has had this season. However, he also agreed that Hanley has hardly been productive. When asked what he will do with the lineup now that his starting third baseman is gone, Guillen provided an honest response.
“Nothing,” he said. “Because he wasn’t producing.”
When Reyes first joined the Marlins, many believed Ramirez would be angry about having to move to third and that his days in Miami were numbered. The two infielders seemed to hit it off, but Ramirez clearly wore out his welcome anyway. We wondered if things were turning around when Hanley called a players-only meeting during a losing streak earlier this year, but it obviously wasn’t enough. Time will tell if he will be a producer or simply a problem for the Dodgers.
H/T Hardball Talk
Photo credit: Howard Smith-US PRESSWIRE
